Renewable energy generated a record-breaking 30% of the world’s power last year, fuelled by new solar and wind, think tank Ember has found.
Construction of solar and wind facilities hit a record in 2023, the group said on Wednesday, growing 23% and 10% respectively.
As a result, “2023 was likely the pivot point, marking peak emissions in the power sector,” Ember commented in a report.
Combined with nuclear power, 40% of global power came from low-carbon sources.
China was the key contributor, according to Ember, as 51% of the world’s new solar and 60% of extra wind capacity was built in the country.
Brazil and the Netherlands were also highlighted for rapidly rolling out renewables, which Ember said paved the way for “clean, electrified” economies in each.
“There’s an unprecedented opportunity for countries that choose to be at the forefront of the clean energy future,” Ember global insights director Dave Jones said.
“Expanding clean electricity not only helps to decarbonise the power sector. It also provides the step up in supply needed to electrify the whole economy.”
Former United Nations climate chief Christiana Figueres hailed 2023 as a “critical turning point”.
She added that “outdated” fossil fuels were now unable to compete with the “exponential innovations and declining cost curves in renewable energy and storage”.
Ember forecasted fossil fuel generation to fall in 2024, after climbing by 0.8% last year, noting a “permanent decline” was now “inevitable” over the coming decade.
Aided by COP28 commitments, global renewable energy should reach 60% of the world’s power by 2030, “putting the world on a pathway aligned with the 1.5C climate goal”.